Playing With Fire

by Adrienne Woods et al.

  I chuckled again.

  “Minaut,” Marick said.

  “What, Marick? I’m just saying,” Minaut said, chocking her head to the side.

  “He can’t hear you,” I said to Minaut.

  “It never stopped me before.” She lay on her paws again.

  “What is she saying?”

  “No, half of the things she says isn’t appropriate, though she has a lot of wit.”

  Mom laughed. “It’s amazing that you can hear her, sweetheart.”

  “Yeah, it was scary as hell a few days ago.”

  “You only met her a few days ago,” Mom said.

  “Long story, Mother.”

  “We have time. Eva isn’t due for another hour.”

  I sighed and told her the story about the day I got kidnapped at my favorite spot. She listened eagerly and said she wanted to meet Luke, Francine, even Darius and Katia, but especially Sebastian.

  I recounted how I met Marick and Minaut, a giant cat who licked me to death. I described the shield and explained how magic terrified me but also how it felt wonderful to witness when it was used for good, like the way Minaut glowed when she saved Marick that night. I told her about the dilapidated house that wasn’t ruined at all but was a beautiful Victorian French mansion with fourteen rooms and the most beautiful kitchen. Marick listened, and Minaut commented here and there about how stubborn I was and how I was still her Danny.

  My story ended with us coming here after living with witches for three weeks. It would be a great title for a book. Rather than The Five Years in Hell Living with a Monster: A Brolin Maartin Story, it could be Five Years Living with Witches: A Forbidden Love Story.

  “Oh, Danielle, your life was surely magical, sweetheart. You didn’t live with that monster and his wife.” She held my hand.

  We finally heard Eva’s bicycle bell ringing outside. My heart was pounding as I looked at my watch. Marick sat on the edge of his seat. Both of us were nervous knowing exactly who she was now.

  I got up as the door opened, and she walked in. She came around the corner and a strong emotion, one I never felt toward her filled up my chest.

  “Danielle,” she yelled and rushed over to me. Her arms hugged me tight.

  “Hey, pumpkin,” I said softly. “Sorry I missed your birthday.”

  She pushed me away and crossed her arms. “Where were you?”

  I tucked her hair behind her ear. “It’s a long story, but I will tell you later about it, okay?”

  “You okay?” she asked me.

  “I’m more than okay, Eva.” I pulled her back in for another hug.

  My gaze looked at Marick who closed his eyes.

  She broke the hug and gasped. “What is that?” She saw Minaut and ran to my mom. She didn’t even notice Marick yet.

  “Oh, she is beautiful, Danielle,” Eva said, stroking her fur.

  Minaut sat up straight. I could feel her excitement. “She’s the spitting image of her mother, I see.”

  I laughed. “Now that is a lie,” I said aloud to the wisp.

  “What is a lie?” Eva looked at me.

  “Uh, later. I want you to meet someone,” I said and turned around, stepping out of the way. I reached out to Eva and pulled her over to meet Marick.

  She finally saw him. At first, she shied away from him, but then it was as if she really saw him and gasped. “Dad?”

  She ran to Marick and flung her arms around him. “I knew you were going to come for me,” she yelled.

  Marick’s eyes were wild as she hugged her arms tight around his neck.

  I looked at my mother who looked bewildered too.

  “Oh, my word.” Minaut’s excitement overpowered mind. “Danielle, do you know what she is?”

  “What do you mean what she is?” I said, not worrying about looking crazy in front of Eva.

  Marick laughed and hugged Eva tighter, the tears pooled thick in his eyes.

  “She’s a Dream Weaver.” Minaut became restless on the spot as if she wanted to lick Eva.

  “She’s a Dream Weaver.” Marick said too and pulled her from him, looking at her.

  “What the hell is a Dream Weaver?” My mother asked the question I wanted to ask.

  “Hey, baby,” Marick said.

  She touched his cheek. “You’re really here.”

  “I’m here.”

  She hugged him again.

  “She’s a rare witch, just like her mother, Danny,” Minaut said. “She must have dreamt about Marick.”

  “I thought she could only get her gift at thirteen?”

  “Dream Weavers access their gift at a much younger age, Danny,” Minaut answered.

  “Eva, how do you know your father?” I asked.

  “Oh, he visits me every night in my dreams.”

  Marick laughed.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” my mother asked Eva.

  “Because I didn’t have to. He explained to me who he was, Mom.” Eva said, and I closed my eyes. “Also, that I’m going to go with Danny, back to another world.”

  Marick laughed. “A Dream Weaver, is a very rare type of witch, Danielle. You can’t keep things from them, and it doesn’t surprise me that her gift is already this strong. With the books in this house and your mother practicing magic, it’s a natural environment for her.”

  “She dreamt about you?”

  He nodded.

  I crouched next to Eva. She hugged me tight. “I’m so sorry, Eva,” I said.

  “It’s okay, and I forgive you.”

  I stared at her. “Forgive me?”

  “That you had to give me to Mom. I know it wasn’t easy for you.”

  My lower lip started to quiver as I looked at her with a frown. “What?”

  She looked at Marick who frowned. “Dad said it wasn’t easy cause you were in a dark place.”

  Marick looked at me and shook his head.

  He didn’t really visit her. It was her ability.

  “I’m so sorry,” I said and hugged her again. “Why didn’t you speak to Mom about this, Eva?”

  “Because I didn’t have to, Danielle.”

  Marick was there in a way I could never be there for her. I started to cry in her tiny arms.

  “It’s okay. Dad explained it to me.”

  I sniffed. “He did?”

  She nodded.

  She gasped then. “Am I going to meet Em and Josh?”

  Marick laughed. “Your grandfather is going to love you. We haven’t had a Dream Weaver in the family for such a long time.”

  She grabbed Marick by the hand to show him something, yelling excitedly. He got up and followed her to a different room. But he gave me a quick hug in the passing—well, more like a squeeze.

  I shook with silent tears. How difficult it had to have been for her to hear those words from Marick, and for her to wake up each morning to find out that he wasn’t there? How long was she even dreaming about him?

  “I didn’t know, Danielle. I’m sorry. She never told me this.” My mother hugged me tight. “She has a gift, and she never told me about this.”

  “She’s magnificent, Danielle. Don’t be sad. It would’ve been much harder if she wasn’t what she is.” Minaut said in awe.

  “How long do you think she knew, Minaut?”

  “I can’t tell. Dream Weavers are so different from other witches, Danielle,” she said.

  “Guess then.”

  She grunted. “It’s as if they are born with it. So, theoretically, she could’ve dream about all of this for years without telling anyone. The bond she has with Marick is a strong one.”

  “Years?” My voice broke again.

  “Danielle, she knows the truth. And if she dreamt that it came from her father, believe me when I tell you, he explained it to her in the gentlest way he could. Even in dreams, Marick would never hurt someone that he loves, especially if that someone is the daughter he always wanted.”

  I almost aborted her. “She knew,” I said, not particularly to an
yone. “I didn’t even know.”

  “Me neither,” my mother answered. “Here I was trying to hide books and seances from her, and she knew. I still don’t understand what a Dream Weaver is, sweetheart.”

  “I’m not sure, Mom, but something tells me it is someone that can control dreams.”

  “Well, Marick sure doesn’t seem afraid. What is it that he can do?”

  “He can persuade people.”

  “He what?”

  “Relax, it’s more obvious than what you think. He didn’t use it today. He needs to look really deep into your eyes.”

  “He used it on you?”

  “Right after I start hearing Minaut’s voice. I had a headache, and I wasn’t dealing well with what we truly are. He eased the headache a bit, made it not so suffocating.”

  “Oh, darling.”

  “Mom, I’m not like you.”

  “I know, but you used to before this Forgotten thing. You were not with Brolin and Camille Maartin, sweetheart.”

  “I know. It’s hard dealing with it. Knowing that your life was good and not evil. For ten years, that’s what I thought. It’s going to take time to break down those walls.”

  “I know.”

  “I’m here, Danny. I’ll help.” Minaut put her paw on my leg.

  “I know.” I smiled, and she rested her head against mine.

  “She’s so beautiful, sweetheart.”

  “We had one too, Mom. A long time ago.” My voice broke again. “He was her brother, name Philip. He died the same night they executed those evil bastards.”

  “Danielle?” Minaut looked up at me worriedly.

  “My bloodline killed your brother.”

  “It’s not your bloodline. Your bloodline is filled with other bloodlines, thinned the Barracs’ bloodline to a level that they aren’t evident anymore,” Minaut said to me. “You’re not evil, Danny, and my brother would’ve loved you dearly. You’re the kind of witch he would have gladly died for.”

  “I saw the conversation you had with him. I knew he was so scared, Minaut.”

  The wisp’s emotion overpowered mine. “Stop thinking about that, Danielle. You were not that witch.” She turned around and lay back on the floor. She was sad. She missed him so much.

  “I’m so sorry.”

  Minaut grunted which made me laugh.

  “What did she say?” my mother asked.

  “Nothing, only that our apologies are bothering her. She said we have nothing to apologize for. We’re not those witches after all.”

  “I wish that the witch world law saw it that way.”

  “Me too.”

  “Can you hear anyone else like you hear her thoughts?”

  I shook my head. “My gift is apparently still waking up.”

  “It will come naturally. I don’t doubt it for a minute.”

  Eva came back with a suitcase filled with clothes.

  “What is this?” my mother asked.

  “We’re leaving, Mom. Go pack your bags.” She clapped her hands which made Marick laughed.

  “Sorry, it was a surprise to me too. I can’t say no.”

  “We’re not leaving?” Eva asked him. “You said…”

  “Calm down.” He sat on his haunches.

  “Where are we going to stay, Eva?” my mother asked.

  I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

  “At the house that nobody can see,” Eva said matter-of-factly.

  “You dreamt about that too?” Marick asked.

  She nodded. “You showed it to me, said it was protected by magic, and that we would be safe there.”

  “Okay, sweetheart.” He looked at Mom.

  “We will be safe there?” Her eyebrows knitted together.

  “Well, you heard Eva.”

  My mother smiled. “Then I guess I have to go pack.”

  Eva clapped her hands. “I’ll help.” She ran after my mom.

  Marick got up from his haunches.

  “Should I be worried about all these dreams?”

  “Hell no! It’s a rare gift, even more rare than yours. We learned about them in school since there hasn’t been one in such a long time.”

  “That rare?”

  “Calm down. She will know about things before they even happen.”

  “Like, she’s a different type of seer?”

  “Something like that, but usually seers see things that they can change through circumstances. The way Eva dreams about events and people, it doesn’t matter what the circumstances are—if they change, her dreams change too.”

  “They do?”

  He nodded. “She’s going to be okay.”

  “How long has she been dreaming about you?”

  “Since she asked your mother about her father.”

  I looked at him. “Marick, that was three years ago.”

  “Well, there you go.”

  “She known for three years that I’m her mother?”

  “Danielle, calm down. We don’t know when dream me told her that. But I’m grateful for it. Her gift made today so much easier for this entire situation. Give her time. Your bond with her will grow stronger.”

  I nodded.

  He gave me another hug. “I know today was hard for you, but it’s over now. The van will be here soon, and then we’ll all be together.”

  “We won’t, Marick. Josh and Em?”

  “There are ways to get them if things go south. I promise.”

  I nodded. He gripped my chin gently with his thumb and index. We stayed that way until his phone rang. He let me go to pick it up and walked to the front door.

  “Here we go again,” Minaut said and disappeared into her tubby black cat form again.

  I was worried about Noir, but Sebastian told me that he was in a safe place for now with all their other cats.

  Eva came back and looked around. “Where is the cat?”

  “She changed into this tubby fat cat because there are others here,” said Marick as he pocketed his phone.

  “I’m not fat,” she scolded Marick, and I suppressed my laughter.

  “Can I say hi to her? Oh, Danielle! I want to hug her so badly.”

  “Sure, go ahead,” Marick said

  Eva crouched in front of Minaut and stroked her fur. Minaut helped by pushing her head into Eva’s palm—she really liked Eva.

  “Am I going to lose you, Minaut?”

  Marick laughed.

  “No, but you do have competition, Danny,” Minaut said.

  I laughed.

  “What did she say?” Marick asked.

  “She said that the competition is strong.”

  He laughed. “Wisps.”

  “You can really speak to her?” Eva asked.

  I smiled and nodded.

  “What does she sound like?”

  “Like a person.”

  “She’s a beautiful cat, though, in both her forms.”

  “Not a cat, Eva, a wisp.”

  “Still beautiful.” She stroked Minaut again.

  “Tell her that it’s a pleasure to meet her.” Minaut nuzzled against Eva’s hand.

  I repeat what Minaut said.

  “Well the pleasure is mine,” she bowed in front of her.

  “She’s a natural, Danny. You were worried for nothing,” Minaut said.

  “So I see.”

  Minaut spend half an hour in the truck before the men started to load. They were obviously already in a trance since they didn’t question anything, including why the cat had to be in the truck for half an hour before they could load.

  My mother made them coffee and served them homemade cookies to distract them with what Marick was busy doing in the office.

  When he came out, Minaut came running in the house too.

  “It’s done, Danny.” Marick left the door open this time.

  I nodded at Marick.

  They started to load the truck quickly. It looked like a normal move—except my mother’s furniture was still inside the house.

 
She locked the door behind her, and all four of us plus Minaut climbed into the truck.

  I couldn’t hear her thoughts at all, and I didn’t like it one bit. “Marick, what is wrong with Minaut?” I asked him as she slept on my lap.

  “She’s trying to contain her magic for the while we travel which will shut you out of her mind. It’s not personal.”

  “She will be okay, won’t she?”

  “She’ll be fine. A little bit drained, but fine.”

  My mind was reeling with questions while Minaut slept on my lap.

  Marick gave them directions as we drove. The ruined structure of the house finally came into sight. I still saw the ruins. It was weird. If he opened my eyes, why couldn’t I see the Victorian mansion in all its glory now?

  “That is the empty house?” Eva asked from her spot on Marick’s lap.

  “That is the empty house,” Marick whispered. “What do you see?”

  “It’s beautiful.”

  I closed my eyes. At least she saw its beauty.

  Marick chuckled as he saw my mother’s face.

  “Trust me—it’s beautiful.”

  “Okay,” she said as the van stopped, her voice filled with doubt.

  Sebastian and Francine poured out of the front door followed by Darius and Luke.

  They all came to help unload, but the movers were fast, and in less than fifteen minutes, all the boxes were unloaded, placed in the house. My mother finally saw its beauty too.

  She clapped her hands. “This is so exciting.”

  I laughed. Minaut was still in my arms, sleeping when I looked at the house. It still looked dilapidated. This was so wrong, but I didn’t want to say anything.

  Sebastian was kneeling in front of Eva introducing himself to her.

  “You look so much like your mother.”

  I laughed and so did Marick who was still over the moon with Eva.

  “We need to talk,” Marick said to Sebastian and walked with Eva into the house. He didn’t have to give her a kiss for her to see everything. She certainly was a natural.

  “What is wrong with Minaut?” Sebastian looked at her sleeping figure.

  “She had to use her magic.”

  “For what, Danny? Were you being followed?”

  “No, no, nothing like that. The boxes at my mother’s house contain something special, which Minaut’s and Marick’s magic awakened. We had to bring the books, Eva, and my mother too.”